Let me pose you a question. You have a perfectly average football team and have a choice as to 2 different schedules to play. Which one is easier?
Schedule A: Played against 12 other perfectly average football teams
Schedule B: Played against 2 playoff level teams, 1 good team, a few average teams, and 5 really bad teams.
I think if the goal is to get as many wins as possible, schedule B is easier. Against schedule A the statistical outcome would be 6-6, while with schedule B since you have 5 "free" wins you are more likely to get to 7 or 8 wins.
However, if the goal is to go undefeated, then schedule A would be easier. It is far more difficult to beat the elite 2 teams at the top, regardless of the rest of the outcomes.
That's basically the SEC in a nutshell. With only 8 conference games, many of their teams have inflated resumes due to consistent cupcake competition. That leads to "better" wins/losses when they play each other. However, the best teams in CFB also reside in the SEC and getting through the schedule unscathed is a monumental challenge. To win the SEC you likely have to beat a pair of top 5 teams. To win the ACC, you might not have to beat any top 5 teams.
Ole Miss is a perfect example. They jumped out to 7-0 and a top 10 national ranking. Their first 7 wins were against Troy, Central Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Tulsa, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and Auburn. That's a schedule that candidly is fairly easy to go 7-0 against. Then suddenly they're ranked high and seen as strong victories for their future opponents. Arkansas started like this due to early free wins. Aggy often does the same. These are not great teams, they are just playing a bad schedule and then it comes crashing down against good competition. But the imprint is there. Arkansas beat an 8-2 Ole Miss, so Arky must be really good!
It is true that the SEC gets the benefit of the doubt in the polls. a 7-3 SEC team is always ranked ahead of a 7-3 ACC or Pac 12 team. Even though that 7 win SEC team might not have a single victory against an opponent with a winning record. That's the part that frustrates me, and I think a lot of us.
But I also recognize that the top of the SEC is uniquely difficult, and there is no more difficult league to win in CFB.
All of this to say, is the SEC overrated? I suppose it depends on how you define it. In the polls? Yeah, probably they have too many teams getting too much of a bump. But in terms of being the most difficult league to win? Not at all.
Schedule A: Played against 12 other perfectly average football teams
Schedule B: Played against 2 playoff level teams, 1 good team, a few average teams, and 5 really bad teams.
I think if the goal is to get as many wins as possible, schedule B is easier. Against schedule A the statistical outcome would be 6-6, while with schedule B since you have 5 "free" wins you are more likely to get to 7 or 8 wins.
However, if the goal is to go undefeated, then schedule A would be easier. It is far more difficult to beat the elite 2 teams at the top, regardless of the rest of the outcomes.
That's basically the SEC in a nutshell. With only 8 conference games, many of their teams have inflated resumes due to consistent cupcake competition. That leads to "better" wins/losses when they play each other. However, the best teams in CFB also reside in the SEC and getting through the schedule unscathed is a monumental challenge. To win the SEC you likely have to beat a pair of top 5 teams. To win the ACC, you might not have to beat any top 5 teams.
Ole Miss is a perfect example. They jumped out to 7-0 and a top 10 national ranking. Their first 7 wins were against Troy, Central Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Tulsa, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and Auburn. That's a schedule that candidly is fairly easy to go 7-0 against. Then suddenly they're ranked high and seen as strong victories for their future opponents. Arkansas started like this due to early free wins. Aggy often does the same. These are not great teams, they are just playing a bad schedule and then it comes crashing down against good competition. But the imprint is there. Arkansas beat an 8-2 Ole Miss, so Arky must be really good!
It is true that the SEC gets the benefit of the doubt in the polls. a 7-3 SEC team is always ranked ahead of a 7-3 ACC or Pac 12 team. Even though that 7 win SEC team might not have a single victory against an opponent with a winning record. That's the part that frustrates me, and I think a lot of us.
But I also recognize that the top of the SEC is uniquely difficult, and there is no more difficult league to win in CFB.
All of this to say, is the SEC overrated? I suppose it depends on how you define it. In the polls? Yeah, probably they have too many teams getting too much of a bump. But in terms of being the most difficult league to win? Not at all.
